Thursday, February 14, 2008

Our Little Valentine's Day Gift

One of my friends said the other day "Just think how far you've come in the past year", and suddenly I realized: I found out we were pregnant with Nora on Valentine's Day last year.

Little did we know what a crazy year 2007 would be for us.

That morning last year I took a pregnancy test -- before I had even missed anything -- if you know what I mean. I just sort of "knew" the way we women know sometimes.

Sure enough, there were two lines on the test, and they got darker and darker (because those of us who have been pregnant before know that you can watch the lines darken as the days pass and your HCG rises).

I took the test on Valentines Day morning and had to wait until Brian and I went to dinner to tell him. Pregnancy is not the sort of thing you just tell them on the phone, of course.

So, I called Brian up at work and asked if he'd like to go to dinner at Carls -- an Italian eatery on 38th Avenue in Northwest Denver. He said "sure", and the long day finally passed, and we met up for dinner.

We pulled up to the back of the restaurant and parked. I remember a monumental amount of snow piled up as we'd had several blizzards in a row. I remember grabbing his arm as he went to open the car door, and said "Wait, there's something I need to tell you."

There's no cutesie way to tell your husband that you're pregnant when you've been pregnant four times before, and it's gone wrong every time. You just get it out there.

"I took a pregnancy test this morning. It was positive."

Silence.

Brian, who's something of a saint for just being married to me, was quiet for a moment then just said "We'll get through this. I'm here for you hon."

Then we were both quiet for a while, and he chuckled and said "It's mine this time, right?"

I punched him in the arm. "Yeah, this time it is."

Joker.

"I'm just trying to lighten things up a bit," he said.

Yeah, we didn't think we'd get to be parents. Pregnancy for many in this world does not equal a baby.

Later that spring, when I was almost exactly 3 months pregnant, I got laid off from my job.

Then Brian's company folded.

Then we were offered (well Brian was, I urged him to take it) a job in Oregon.

The move.

The hospitalization at 29 weeks.

The five weeks of waiting.

Nora.

The house sold.

The house bought.

And here we are, February 14, 2008 in a completely different place, living a completely different life than we were one year ago today.

It's a miracle of sorts in some respects. I know moving across half the country was hard for both of us -- particularly Brian since he loved Denver and considered it "Home" with a capital "H".

But what I hope for is that the next year will be a bit of a yawner, only punctuated by the excitement of raising our baby girl.

Thank you to all who have supported us through so much. This isn't the Academy Awards so I won't list it all rapid fire, but you family and friends know who you are.